30 Year Old Tawny Port by S. Leonardo -- (Quinta do Mourão)
Posted: Tue Dec 09, 2008 11:01 am
NV S. Leonardo 30-yr old Tawny
bottled in 2008
Tasted blind 12/8/2008 at Roy's house
The very first thing I said upon smelling this in the glass was "this smells familiar." Roy thought that was unlikely, though, since it is only available in Portugal and the only Port I could remember having in Portugal that wouldn't also be available in the US was a 1963 Romariz Colheita. I was wrong, but more on that later. **
The color is very tan, almost brown. Any red left is an afterthought, though there is a slightly orange tint to the tan/brown. It just looks old, and it looks a bit like Madeira. Light reflections in/through the glass do show a nice red tone, but that could be the bright red tablecloth exerting its holiday influence.
The nose is very pleasant and mild. At first there is some Christmas spice and possibly some very faint gingerbread. Later that morphs more toward cedar or some other aromatic wood. There is also a faint hint of oak, but it is deeply buried in the spices and mellow dried fruits.
In the mouth it is smooth and creamy. It lacks the tartness or sourness that most 20-yr olds still have. There's no sharp edge to it, either, like most 10-yr olds have. There is a hard to identify impression of cake, which at first seems like shortbread but over time changes every so slightly to be shortcake. Roy suggests oatmeal raisin cookie, and it's spot on but in pieces. The oatmeal cookie - with some light cinnamon and other spices - wafts through your mouth first, and is then followed by raisins and nuts that I can't completely define. Almonds, possibly.
The finish seems short, but it's not getting much of a chance to develop because the Port is so tasty.
As the glass empties a pronounced aroma of spice develops.
Knowing only that it was a tawny of some sort, I guessed tawny with an indication of age over colheita because it just felt too well-rounded and complex to be from a single vintage. My normal quaffer is a 20-yr old, and this felt significantly older (in no small part due to the color), so I went with a 40-yr old. The only 40-yr old Tawny that I've had is the Noval, and I could tell that it wasn't that, so I couldn't guess a shipper. As already noted, it was a 30-yr old S. Leonardo.
** Once Roy revealed the bottle I recognized it. As it turns out, I have had S. Leonardo Port before - at Vinologia! During one of my family's many stops at AVEPOD, Maria Theresa recommended that I try S. Leonardo at Vinologia that evening. So when I ordered a flight I asked specifically that they include a S. Leonardo, and they included the 10-yr old. As I recall, the 10-yr old was equally as impressive! (But it was overshadowed by the 1952 Dalva Golden White Colheita that I had in the same flight.)
bottled in 2008
Tasted blind 12/8/2008 at Roy's house
The very first thing I said upon smelling this in the glass was "this smells familiar." Roy thought that was unlikely, though, since it is only available in Portugal and the only Port I could remember having in Portugal that wouldn't also be available in the US was a 1963 Romariz Colheita. I was wrong, but more on that later. **
The color is very tan, almost brown. Any red left is an afterthought, though there is a slightly orange tint to the tan/brown. It just looks old, and it looks a bit like Madeira. Light reflections in/through the glass do show a nice red tone, but that could be the bright red tablecloth exerting its holiday influence.
The nose is very pleasant and mild. At first there is some Christmas spice and possibly some very faint gingerbread. Later that morphs more toward cedar or some other aromatic wood. There is also a faint hint of oak, but it is deeply buried in the spices and mellow dried fruits.
In the mouth it is smooth and creamy. It lacks the tartness or sourness that most 20-yr olds still have. There's no sharp edge to it, either, like most 10-yr olds have. There is a hard to identify impression of cake, which at first seems like shortbread but over time changes every so slightly to be shortcake. Roy suggests oatmeal raisin cookie, and it's spot on but in pieces. The oatmeal cookie - with some light cinnamon and other spices - wafts through your mouth first, and is then followed by raisins and nuts that I can't completely define. Almonds, possibly.
The finish seems short, but it's not getting much of a chance to develop because the Port is so tasty.
As the glass empties a pronounced aroma of spice develops.
Knowing only that it was a tawny of some sort, I guessed tawny with an indication of age over colheita because it just felt too well-rounded and complex to be from a single vintage. My normal quaffer is a 20-yr old, and this felt significantly older (in no small part due to the color), so I went with a 40-yr old. The only 40-yr old Tawny that I've had is the Noval, and I could tell that it wasn't that, so I couldn't guess a shipper. As already noted, it was a 30-yr old S. Leonardo.
** Once Roy revealed the bottle I recognized it. As it turns out, I have had S. Leonardo Port before - at Vinologia! During one of my family's many stops at AVEPOD, Maria Theresa recommended that I try S. Leonardo at Vinologia that evening. So when I ordered a flight I asked specifically that they include a S. Leonardo, and they included the 10-yr old. As I recall, the 10-yr old was equally as impressive! (But it was overshadowed by the 1952 Dalva Golden White Colheita that I had in the same flight.)
